The Tea Party has long attempted to portray itself as a populist movement — angry both at Wall Street bailouts and social spending. The notion of government action working to save the private sector from collapse was literally depicted as a giant step towards Nazism, most prominently by unofficial Tea Party leader Glenn Beck.

And it is that Glenn Beck who today wrapped his arms around the U.S. Chamber Of Commerce business lobbyists who, when facing crisis, clamored for that government help — the fascism known as TARP, and the slavery known as the stimulus.

Today, Beck cut a check for $10,000 to the Chamber of Commerce, and urged his radio listeners to follow his lead. “They are us” said Beck.

…where socialism sought totalitarian control of a society’s economic process through direct state operations of the means of production, fascism sought to control indirectly through the domination of nominally private owners. Would you say that this is what’s happening with G.M. right now? And AIG? …

The U.S. Chamber of Commerce lobbied for the creation of the TARP program and continues to support efforts to improve the program to ensure its success. With banks not lending, businesses lost the liquidity needed to function, while simultaneously, consumer spending, which makes up 70% of our economy, was shrinking at an historic rate. Simply put, the financial crisis had driven the United States to its worst economic predicament since the Great Depression. In order for businesses to function and for an economic recovery to take hold, the financial services sector needed immediate shoring up and that vehicle was TARP.

…The TARP program has had its problems, but a year later we can say that an outright collapse was avoided, the financial sector is stabilizing, and the first signs are appearing that an economic recovery is taking hold.

Is that the United States Chamber of Commerce or the gas chamber of Auschwitz?

Well, maybe Beck and the Chamber come together on the most defining act of Obama presidency: the stimulus.

It is the nanny state. They’re going to tell us what we can eat, they’re can tell us what our temperature needs to be in our homes, they can tell us what kind of car to drive. They can tell businesses how to run their business. It’s slavery. It is slavery.

The global economy is in uncharted and dangerous waters and inaction from Washington is not an option. No package of this size can be perfect but we need a bill that will unlock capital markets, free up credit, and create momentum in the economy…

But considering Trump said he wants to "drain the swamp," you might be surprised he picked someone who literally built the swamp. Scott Pruitt is a pioneer in turning government over to corporate special interests.

1300 Carrier manufacturing jobs are still going to Mexico. And the 800 jobs staying in Indiana aren't safe, because Carrier is moving to automate much of the work, with the help of the American taxpayer.

About Bill Scher

Bill Scher is the Online Campaign Manager at Campaign for America's Future, and the executive editor of LiberalOasis.com. He is the author of Wait! Don't Move To Canada!: A Stay-and-Fight Strategy to Win Back America, a regular contributor to Bloggingheads.tv and host of the LiberalOasis Radio Show weekly podcast. He has opinion articles that have been published by the New York Times, Minneapolis Star Tribune and Omaha World-Herald, and has made appearances on CNN, MSNBC and NPR among other TV and radio outlets.